How An Ex-AOL Sales Rep Turned Her Food And Fashion Blog Into A Book Deal

Schuman was bored at her sales job at AOL in 2008, and needed more creativity in her life.

She decided to start a blog to write about her favorite things: fashion and food. She put together her favorite outfits and strutted around the streets of Los Angeles taking shots of outfits she paired together.

"I hadn't really seen a blog pairing food and fashion," said Schuman, 28. "That was really weird to me. Cupcakes and cashmere just seem like a natural pairing."

Her blog, "Cupcakes and Cashmere," exploded when Coach asked Schuman to design a bag for their line in June 2010. She then went on to win Best Fashion Blog in 2010 from Bloggie. She's popular on Twitter too, with 41,550 followers.

Following her brand partnerships with Coach and Juicy Couture, Schuman's been approached by Abram's Publishing to write a book, which she describes as "an extension of her blog, but a guide of how to live your life by the seasons." The book will come out in August 2012.

Schuman didn't go to fashion school or culinary school, and admits she just writes about her vision and what she likes.

"I started the blog this way for selfish reasons," Schuman said. "I knew if I was just writing about food or fashion, I'd get bored. There's a lot of learning as I go, sharing my tips. I'm sure professionals might not say that my makeup or food is not done right, but I'm just an everyday girl sharing how I go about life."

She admits that while she makes sure all of her recipes taste good, the food also has to look good in order to appear on her blog.

If you think Schuman looks familiar, you may recognize her from MTV's "The Hills." She was working in sales at Teen Vogue around the same time as Lauren Conrad was interning, and occasionally appeared in shots when they filmed at the office.

But since then she's been a regular girl. She left AOL when the company was offering voluntary buy-outs in January 2010 and has concentrated on her blog full-time ever since.

All of the clothes on the blog are items Schuman actually wears. She doesn't buy anything just to look good on her blog, she says.

"The outfits I show on the blog are organic," Schuman said. "I don't want to be in jeans and a T-shirt everyday, I liked to get dressed up and have inspirational pieces."

Schuman is known for pairing more-expensive items with affordable and trendy pieces from places such as Zara, Forever 21 and H&M.

She relies on the brand Elizabeth And James to find something that is tailored and fits her right. Every Sunday she goes to the flea market, in search of the perfect vintage item.

With so much of her life documented through photos and her blogs, Schuman says the biggest challenge is shutting off.

"Every so often I need to remind myself to put down the camera and stop working. Being my own boss is a blessing, but it's hard to separate work and real life," Schuman said. "I'm so fortunate to have the life I do, and the blog, but every so often to give myself a creative break I have to remind myself not to work."